This research aims to analyze the competitive environment of companies in the wine sector in Portugal and assess the implications in the development of contingent strategic guidelines and different performances. Proposes to apply the methodological framework IKST – Integrated Key for Strategic Thought for international expansion. The research was carried out at two levels: at a preliminary level – a general characterisation was made of the companies as to their resources, and at a central level – the examination of the strategic aspect of the companies was carried out. The research involved the collection of primary data (survey of 164 companies in the sector) and secondary data (from documentary nature). Explores the strategic aspect, analyzing the sector in terms of global and national context, in order to design a diagnostic context of action, using the models of PEST and 5 Forces. Identifies, based on various statistical techniques, the adopted style of strategic thought and their profile in terms of contextual variables, as well as the underlying economic performance.

This research project aims to analyze the competitive environment of companies in the wine sector in Portugal and assess the implications in the development of contingent strategic guidelines and different performances.Proposes to apply the methodological framework the IKST – Integrated Key for Strategic Thought for international expansion. The research was carried out at two levels: at a preliminary level – a general characterisation was made of the companies as to their resources, and at a central level – the examination of the strategic aspect of the companies was carried out. The research involved the collection of primary data (survey of 164 companies in the sector) and secondary data (from documentary nature). Explores the strategic aspect, analyzing the sector in terms of global and national context, in order to design a diagnostic context of action, using the models of PEST and 5 Forces. Identifies, based on various statistical techniques, the adopted style of strategic thought and the profile in terms of contextual variables, as well as the underlying economic performance.

The enormous growth of the Australian wine industry in the 1990s relied strongly on the export market, whereas domestic markets remained relatively stagnant. The study with 272 subjects in Adelaide in 2000 wants to contribute to better market transparency for adopting the product line to consumer demands. Consumers were clustered into five groups: Enjoyment oriented social drinkers (14 %), fashion or image oriented drinkers (19 %), ritual oriented conspicuous wine enthusiasts (18 %), purposeful inconspicious premium drinkers (25 %) and basic wine drinkers (24 %). Details on average age, educational status, income and consumption are given together with a number of indicative brands for the respective group.; Johan Bruwer, Elton Li & Mike Reid

During August and September 2001, 363 wine consumers shopping for wine at eight wine retail stores in metropolitan Adelaide, South Australia, were extensively surveyed about their activities, interests and opinions about wine and their wine purchasing behaviour. The study consisted of two major parts. The first was to identify the segments that form the South Australian wine market and the second was to identify the preferred risk reduction strategies of each of those segments and link those to the wine retail environment. The underlying assumption was that retailers could manipulate their retail mix to encompass the preferred strategies of their target market, thus providing the basis for a potential competitive advantage. This data was analysed and the major results are summarised below. The study identified five distinct segments, each with their own characteristics and behaviours. These were: • Segment 1 – Conservative, Wine Knowledgeable Wine Drinkers (20.9% of the total market) These consumers are generally well educated, knowledgeable and predominantly male, whose buying habits are reasonably predictable from year to year. They are the consumers who may previously have been stereotyped as “connoisseurs”. • Segment 2 – Image Oriented...

Purpose – This study aims to explore the nature of Chinese young adults’ (CYAs) wine drinking behaviour. It also aims to examine CYAs’ wine knowledge and establish whether there are positive relationships between wine knowledge and wine drinking behaviour variables. Design/methodology/approach – Information was obtained from a convenience sample of 414 university students in China using the self-administration data collection method. The nature of CYAs’ basic wine knowledge and wine drinking behaviour including wine drinking frequency, venue, and purpose of wine drinking were examined in the survey. Findings – The majority of CYAs lack even the most basic wine knowledge. Generally, they drink wine infrequently. A large proportion of CYAs prefer red wine (92 per cent) to white wine (7 per cent). Most (60 per cent) CYAs like to drink wine at home, followed by hotels (21 per cent) and restaurants (15 per cent). About 60 per cent of CYAs drink wine for social communication while 27 per cent drink for body health reasons. A high 96 per cent of CYAs consider themselves likely to drink wine in the future. Significant differences exist between the genders in wine knowledge and likelihood of future wine drinking. Strong correlations were found between consumer wine knowledge and frequency and likelihood of future wine drinking. Research limitations/implications – The paper provides an overview of CYAs’ wine drinking behaviour by a convenience sample investigation...

This thesis analyses the meaning of tourism in relation to the globalisation of the wine industry and the significance of places, in particular, wine tours and tasting in South Australia. Tourism and travel are market sectors worth approximately 10% of world GNP in 2007/8 and from an economic and marketing perspective, tourism and wine tasting can prima facie be conceptualised as a form of consumption. However, as I argue in this thesis the leisure and appeal of a holiday, or a day out visiting wineries are more than simply an enjoyable form of relaxed socio-economic consumption. I argue that wine tasting and tourism are sensually based leisure practices and learning experiences. The analysis of wine tourism, festive events and wine tasting in South Australia is structured in relation to the tourist‘s experience of a wine place, the cultural invention of standards surrounding taste, and the tourist‘s movement through time and space during a wine tour. This methodological and theoretical approach acknowledges the significance of place in creating tourist experiences, as Casey observes: ―The world comes bedecked in places; it is a place-world to begin with‖ (1996:43). Fieldwork included tasting events and coach and private tours to wine regions in the Barossa Valley...

PURPOSE: The purpose of this paper is to determine the degree to which wine consumers in South Australia have different liking for white wine styles, and to relate reported liking to wine knowledge and demographic differences. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APROACH: group of 150 regular white wine drinking consumers from the Adelaide metropolitan area responded to a wine habits and attitudes questionnaire. Consumers were segmented based on self-reported liking of white wine styles, with three distinct segments identified. FINDINGS: Sauvignon Blanc wine likers were mainly younger females with low wine knowledge who reported not drinking Chardonnay wines. Conversely, “Riesling wine likers” were generally older with higher wine knowledge. These consumers were interested in the region, vintage and alcohol level when purchasing white wine. The final group (40 percent of the total sample) had a lower liking for Riesling wines, but liked all types relatively highly, had low to moderate wine knowledge and took more note of expert opinion than the other clusters. RESEARCH LIMITATIONS/IMPLICATIONS: The findings of this study can be extrapolated to the South Australian population, however, the sample size may restrict the generalisation of the results to the broader Australian population. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: The results of this study provide initial insights into the behaviour of white wine consumers and highlight the importance of wine knowledge in differentiating consumer liking. Some strategies for influencing consumers’ preference are suggested.; Ellena S. King...

Understanding the needs of consumers is a fundamental principle of marketing and Shiraz is arguably the most important grape variety produced in Australia, as it is the variety most widely associated, both domestically and globally, with Australia’s wine industry. This three part project examined consumers in the Australian domestic wine market in respect of their liking of Australian Shiraz and provided up to date market intelligence on that market. The first stage of the project consisted of a study that segmented the Australian domestic market using a newly developed Fine Wine Instrument (FWI) that consisted of three variables, as the base. This instrument identified three segments in the market which were denoted: “Connoisseurs”; “Aspirants”; and “No Frills” wine consumers. The Connoisseur segment consumed more wine, spent more money on wine and was more knowledgeable about wine than the other segments identified in the market. The results demonstrated that this segment of consumers was important to the Australian wine industry, as they offered large potential lifetime earnings to the industry. This project also identified a number of stable segments within that market and provided updated information on the market. The next stage introduced the Shiraz variety into the project and was motivated by Wine Australia’s “Regional Heroes” brand segmentation. The aim of the project was to identify those sensory attributes that might differentiate Shiraz wines from a number of delimited Australian Shiraz producing regions. The study employed a number of wine experts to undertake a sorting task...

This thesis describes the synthesis, hydrolysis and analysis of menthiafolic acid, a precursor to wine lactone in wine. (R)-Menthiafolic acid was synthesised and then taken through acid hydrolyses to confirm its conversion to wine lactone under wine-like conditions and to determine the chirality of the resultant product. A Gas Chromatography/ Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) Stable Isotope Dilution Assay (SIDA) method was developed to analyse for this compound in grapes and wine. Chiral analysis was also carried out on wine extracts to confirm which enantiomers of menthiafolic acid and wine lactone are present in real wine samples. Bioconversion of the glucose ester of menthiafolic acid utilising three different microorganisms was evaluated in order to determine if menthiafolic acid is produced and hence if this compound is an indirect precursor to wine lactone through initial degradation to menthiafolic acid. Chapter 1 comprises an introduction and literature review.
Chapter 2 concerns the synthesis and acid hydrolysis of (R)-menthiafolic acid. The synthesis gave a mixture of 95% (R)-enantiomer and 5% (S)-enantiomer menthiafolic acid. Hydrolysis was carried out under mild, wine-like conditions and under harsh Simultaneous Distillation Extraction (SDE) conditions. These hydrolyses showed that this compound is...

When wine is aged on lees, the process of lees autolysis causes the release of a range of constituents including mannoproteins, polysaccharides, amino acids and fatty acids that interact with the fermented wine leading to changes in the final flavour and sensory aspects of the wine. There is no doubt that ageing wines on lees for extended periods of time, adds beneficial organoleptic qualities to a finished wine. Furthermore, whilst the interactions of wine lees on phenolics, lipids and mannoproteins released have been widely studied, exactly how all these factors and constituents influence final wine quality is not totally clear. It can be said that there is still a poor understanding of how lees impacts on wine aroma. Moreover, the addition of autolytic enzymes to speed up lees breakdown or the addition of inactivated dry yeast (IDY) preparations to enhance the release of mannoproteins and glucans so that the perceived benefits of lees exposure are achieved in a shorter timeframe is only a recent advance over the last decade or so. Consequently, more research is needed in this field in order to further clarify the mechanisms and factors that lead to these perceived changes in a wine upon ageing on lees. To this end, the Introduction for this PhD thesis provides a complete summary of the current state of play in terms of knowledge as to the scientific and practical potential of ageing wines on lees. It begins with a detailed account into the history of winemaking in Australia and the current state of play in terms of how Australian winemakers perceive utilising lees exposure to prepare their wine styles. Autolysis is a slow process and often is conducted over periods of years. Coupling this with the fact that wines are produced from a range of grape varieties; employ a range of different yeasts and utilise different winemaking protocols...

Many compounds important for wine quality are in the glycosidic form, that is a sugar moiety is attached, through a glycosidic linkage, to the alcoholic group of the compound. Such glycosidic compounds comprise several groups, all having great relevance to wine quality and can be broadly grouped as the aromatic compounds and
compounds that contribute to colour. The former group, when in the glycosidic form are, unfortunately, odourless and do not contribute to the aroma of wine. However, once the sugar moiety is cleaved, they regain their aromatic characteristics. This is the reason why glycosyl-terpenols, for example, are considered a potential source of aroma in wine. On the other hand, anthocyanins need to be in the glycosidic form to contribute to colour in wine, especially red wines. Once de-glycosylated, these compounds tend to lose a substantial colour capacity (at least in wine conditions, particularly at low pH) and become more chemically reactive. In red wines this outcome may be undesirable but, conversely, for rose or 'blanc de noir' wines, decolourisation might be beneficial. Of the many methods to increase the amount of aroma or manipulate colour, enzymatic hydrolysis seems to be the most appropriate for wine since it has lesser drawbacks compared to methods such as acidic hydrolysis or heating. Given the particular nature of glycosides in wine...

The former Soviet republic of Georgia is reputedly the cradle of wine and has enjoyed at least 8000 vintages. It has also been a major supplier of wine to Russia for at least 200 years, but to few other countries. In 2006, however, Russia imposed a ban on beverage imports from Georgia. Since then this relatively poor country, in which nearly half the population is rural and most farmers (average holding 1.2 ha) have a vineyard, has been seeking to develop new export markets for its wine. This paper assesses the potential for growth in Georgia’s wine production and exports. It then outlines ways to addresses the challenges involved in trying to realize that potential, drawing on the experience of other countries that have expanded their wine exports in the past two decades. Implications for policy are drawn out in the final section.; Kym Anderson

Wine tourism has emerged as a strong and growing area of special-interest tourism in ‘New World’ wine countries in particular, and represents an increasinglysignificant component of the regional and rural tourism products of these countries. The development of wine routes throughout Europe, and increasinglyin ‘New World’ wine countries, provides the link between wine and tourism. South Africa is believed to be one of the most aggressive in the short- to medium-term in getting out its wine tourism message. The twofold purpose of this paper is to investigate the structural dimensions of the South African wine industryas these specificallyrelate to wine route estates and to determine the nature and extent of the wine tourism ‘product’ offered on the wine route estates. In this context, 125 face-to-face interviews were conducted with wine route estate enterprises. Wine route estates have long recognised the potential of wine tourism and the implications of their involvement in wine tourism through their inclusion in wine routes are discussed.; http://journals.elsevier.com/02615177/tourism-management/

Phenolic compounds play an important role in red wine colour, bitterness, astringency, as well
as a range of other tactile or 'mouth-feel' characteristics. Progressive changes of phenolic
compounds, initially extracted from grapes, occur during the storage and aging of red wines.
The decrease of astringency occurring during wine aging has been considered as a result of
mainly anthocyanin-flavanol condensation either directly or mediated by aldehydes. The
contribution of these polymeric pigments formed during wine aging to the unique properties of
red wine is an important question still unanswered.
Experiments were conducted to synthesise polymeric pigments in model wine solutions under
different conditions in the absence of acetaldehyde to provide material for chemical and
sensory studies. Only small amounts of polymeric pigments were formed in these experiments
confirming that direct polymerisation is a slow process. The low yield of polymers made it
necessary to investigate the isolation of polymeric pigments directly from wine. A preparative
fractionation protocol was developed to obtain fractions enriched in different red wine
pigment combinations for further investigation. A HPLC method was also developed that
separated the pigmented and non-pigmented polymers...

Protein-induced wine haze is a major concern to the wine industry worldwide. While the presence of protein haze is unlikely to affect the sensory profile, consumers will generally reject wines containing hazes as they appear microbially spoiled. Consequently, an important step during commercial winemaking is to treat wines with bentonite, which removes heat unstable proteins by adsorption, and prevents haze formation. Whilst this process is effective, it is claimed to adversely affect the quality of the treated wine under certain conditions. Furthermore, 5-10% of the wine volume is typically occluded in bentonite lees. This wine is either lost or substantially diminished in quality and value during recovery. Therefore the development of alternative and economically viable process technologies that maintain wine quality and reduce costs would be highly desirable. This thesis is concerned with the development of alternative and innovative approaches to bentonite treatment of wine. Particular emphasis was placed on developing practical research outcomes that could be readily commercially adopted. Pursuant to this, fundamental research regarding the mechanics of protein adsorption onto bentonite was undertaken to gain an understanding of how bentonite properties relate to adsorption and settling behaviour in wine. The effect of bentonite heat treatment on protein adsorption performance and settling behaviour in a model wine was also investigated. In general...

During the last years, the use of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) as a non-thermal technology for preservation or aging of wine has increased substantially in the academic community. However, HHP treated wine has been only analysed after the pressure treatment, with no knowledge available on the effects of HHP during subsequent storage. The results presented in this thesis showed that HHP treatments influence the chemical and sensorial properties of wine during storage.
The application of high hydrostatic pressure treatments in winemaking for wine preservation, as an alternative to sulphur dioxide, was evaluated studying the effect of HHP in the physicochemical and sensorial properties of red and white wines during bottle storage. High pressure treatments with 5 min of processing time and pressures of 425 and 500 MPa were shown to influence on both red and white wine physicochemical and sensorial characteristics. However, the effects were only perceptible after, at least, 6 months of storage. The alterations that occurred on the pressurized red wine characteristics, such as the more orange-red colour and the lower antioxidant activity (15-27% less), total phenolic content (9% less), and anthocyanins content (45–61% less), were due to an increase of condensation reactions of phenolic compounds. The increase of these condensation reactions lead to the formation of compounds with higher degree of polymerisation that became insoluble along storage...